Last year we took an amazing trip to New Orleans and fell head over heels in love with the food! One of our favorite things we did was take a cooking class to learn how to make jambalaya, gumbo, pralines and so many other amazing dishes. Today’s Slow Cooker Crock Pot Gumbo recipe with Sausage, Chicken and Shrimp is an adaption from everything we learned in class and enjoyed while we were in New Orleans.
Now if only I could figure out how to make a Cafe Du Monde beignet magically appear in my kitchen! Hello yum! Seriously I don’t know what they do to make them sooo good but I could enjoy one right now and love it.
There is just something magical about New Orleans. Ok, parts of it are a bit smelly but that is probably due to all the fun people have on Bourbon St. We skipped partying on Bourbon St. and instead hung out around the French Quarter listening to jazz music, people watching and relaxing. I am so ready to plan another trip to New Orleans soon.
Since we can’t hop a plane today for New Orleans instead we will enjoy a big bowl of this Crock Pot Gumbo Recipe with sausage, chicken and shrimp!
Contents
Crockpot Gumbo
Have you seen this Slow Cooker Crock Pot Beef and Broccoli Recipe?
What is the difference between Gumbo and Jambalaya?
Visit Louisiana in America’s Deep South, and you’re sure to come across gumbos and jambalayas of all descriptions. Cuisine in the area has both Creole and Cajun influences, and you’ll find versions of both dishes in both cuisines.
Generally speaking, Creole cooking is based on French cooking with Spanish, Italian, German, African and West Indian influences. Cajun cooking is peasant-style cooking developed by early residents of the Louisiana swamps. Cajun food tends to consist of one-pot meals, put together for taste rather than appearance, and often highly spiced. Creole food is more polished and subtly flavored.
Gumbo is similar to a soup. It’s based on a roux of flour and oil. Depending on whether you eat it on Louisiana’s Gulf Coast, In New Orleans or Lafayette, it will be thin, medium or thick, the consistency is determined by the use of light, medium or dark roux. Okra tends to be a common ingredient in most gumbos, which also contain a combination of various seafood or chicken and sausage.
Gumbo is very much an improvised dish, and what goes into it depends on what is available to the cook at the time. There are no hard and fast rules regarding quantities – Creole and Cajun cuisines are art rather than science. Gumbo is always served on a bed of rice.
Jambalaya is a rice dish to which other foods are added, similar to a Spanish paella without the saffron. Creole jambalaya tends to be tomato-based, which is understandable when you realize that most Creoles are descended from French, Spanish and Portuguese ancestors. Mediterranean cookery has always relied heavily on tomatoes, and the Creole version is known as red jambalaya.
Cajun jambalaya is more country style and usually misses out the tomatoes, though some Cajun cooks may use tomato paste as a thickening and flavoring agent. The Cajuns brown the meat to give a smoky flavor to the dish, which is known as brown jambalaya.
Jambalaya is similar to gumbo in that there are no hard and fast rules for ingredient quantities and seasonings. Anything can – and often does – find its way into jambalaya. However, as this is a rice dish which depends on most of the liquid being absorbed, you should use two cups of stock or water to each cup of rice. Chicken and/ or seafood are the most common additions to jambalaya, along with a variety of vegetables.
Jambalaya and gumbo are two hearty, flavourful and inexpensive meals, which can easily be adapted to feed large numbers. Don’t think about the differences – just eat!
Crock Pot Gumbo Recipe with Sausage, Chicken, and Shrimp
Ingredients
1lb Chicken Breast (cut into bite-size pieces)
1lb Smoked Sausage (kielbasa, farmers sausage, garlic sausage, etc)
1lb Shrimp, raw and shells removed (I left tails on for more flavor)
1 Onion, diced
1 Green pepper, diced
1 Hot pepper, (jalapeno, serrano, scotch bonnet, habanero, etc) (optional!!!)
3 ribs Celery, diced
1 can Diced tomatoes (28 oz)
3 tsp Garlic, minced
2 C Chicken broth
1 Tbsp. Cajun spice (or more if you prefer)
1 tsp Thyme
1 tsp Oregano
1 1/3 C Rice (cooked)
How to make Slow Cooker Gumbo
1. Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker, except for the shrimp and the rice.
2. Cook on low for 6 – 7 hours, stirring occasionally
3. In last hour of cooking, salt the shrimp lightly, and then add them to the crock pot
4. In the last half hour of cooking, add the rice and stir. Replace cover. You want the rice just to warm through and take on some of the cooking flavors.
5. Serve with crusty bread, and enjoy!
We use either the Hamilton Beach Set ‘n Forget Programmable Slow Cooker, 6-Quart
or Crock-Pot 5-Quart Slow Cooker
for all of our crock pot recipes
Do you love recipes? Check out our copy cat recipes, dessert recipes, and our Crock Pot Recipes.
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- 1 lb Chicken Breast cut into bite size pieces
- 1 lb Smoked Sausage kielbasa, farmers sausage, garlic sausage, etc
- 1 lb Shrimp raw and shells removed (I left tails on for more flavor)
- 1 Onion diced
- 1 Green pepper diced
- 1 Hot pepper (jalapeno, serrano, scotch bonnet, habanero, etc) (optional!!!)
- 3 ribs Celery diced
- 1 can Diced tomatoes 28 oz
- 3 tsp Garlic minced
- 2 C Chicken broth
- 1 Tbsp. Cajun spice or more if you prefer
- 1 tsp Thyme
- 1 tsp Oregano
- 1 1/3 C Rice cooked
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Combine all ingredients in the slow cooker, except for the shrimp and the rice.
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Cook on low for 6 – 7 hours, stirring occasionally
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In last hour of cooking, salt the shrimp lightly, and then add them to the crock pot
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In the last half hour of cooking, add the rice and stir. Replace cover. You want the rice just to warm through and take on some of the cooking flavors.
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Serve with crusty bread, and enjoy!
Great go-to, easy and delicious recipe. My Cajun seasoning mix has some salt, so I use reduced sodium chicken broth. I’ve made this about half a dozen times—it’s become a crockpot staple for me. Thank you for sharing!
I understand this is not a roux based gumbo,and that is fine. Would you add a little file as a thickener, or does this thicken up on its own (I don’t like okra unless it is fried)? Thanks, this looks delicious.
I can’t get over some of the rude comments people leave regarding a recipe. I just want to say that this is delicious and thank you for sharing it! It was easy to make and made my entire home smell amazing!
Hi, This meal looks delicious, however, I am curious if it freezes well. I am trying to plan ahead, and want to get some meals cooked and in the freezer. Thanks!
Thanks so much for this recipe!!! Mines cooking in the crockpot now and my house smells amazing! I can’t wait to try it 🙂
PSA! I accidentally bought regular salt chicken broth (I normally get no salt added) and added the recommended amount of salt as well- WAY too salty. I got to find out that the “add a potato to soak up the salt” trick actually works, so that’s good. Also, this isn’t traditional gumbo mostly because it doesn’t have a roux base, but I found that this is pretty darn tasty, and I liked not having to cook the roux for half an hour. You want to add a bay leaf, at the very least, and for the love of god use andouille sausage and brown it first. Do cook the rice separately and add it to the bowl you’re going to eat out of first, then add the gumbo on top. And hit it with some hot sauce!
This was great. I added okra at last moment with the shrimp. Second day was even tastier!!
Gumbo is a Soup..look it up .. and stop being critical.. You dont like this receipe then that’s your business .. You know how to make a Gumbo the traditional method of using a big pot and not a crock pot , then good for you . However, this is Tammies blog , her receipe style of making a Gumbo in a Darn Crock Pot.. Some people want an easy way or a way to use their crock pot.
Easy and delicious. I had friends over who loved it so much they asked me to translate it into French, which I did!
I added a bit of Okra to mine. Thank you so much.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Great recipe, but where the fu** do you get off wasting our time scrolling down 80 of the page reading your lame ass story before we get the recipe? Only to be followed by an even longer chain of comments? You’re bad and you should feel bad. You’re the reason we deserve Trump as a president.
Your welcome for the free recipe and not having to pay to access it. I hope that you enjoyed the gumbo and your finger is not to worn out from having to scroll a couple of times.
I’m sorry, but I can’t resist noting how shocked I am that someone took the time to post a reply and went political regarding a recipe. Sad. Not sure what politics has to do with gumbo, but I digress.
Tammilee, Thank you so much for posting this recipe. My husband makes gumbo from scratch (2 day process) for me every year for my birthday. I can’t wait to try this for an easier, delicious, weeknight meal.
HO MANY SERVINGS?????
Question about the chicken! Should it be raw or cooked when you cube it before adding it? I plan to make this tomorrow! 🙂 I’m super excited to try this! Thank you
This was easy but tasty recipe. Loved it.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Do you use ground thyme and ground oregano or use the leaves?
This is clearly a recipe for the crock pot chefs who think the crock pot makes everything taste just good as or better than the original slaving in the kitchen and doing it the right way. Anyone can measure a bunch of ingredients and throw them into a crock pot, put the lid on it and come back in 7 hours. There’s 1 reply someone wants to put uncooked rice in it. That was either a lazy person or a very bad cook. REALLY! You don’t even want to cook rice the right way. The first time I made gumbo, I burned the roux 3 times. There is a delicate balance between dark roux and burnt, but you can clearly taste burnt. 3 sausages options were mentioned in the ingredients and none of them mentioned the true gumbo sausage andouille. For those who think this is a good recipe, I challenge you to take the time and make it the right way, crock potless. Trust me you’ll delete this recipe. I was always taught when you try a new recipe you should do something to it to make it your own. For the future gumbo makers, you can get andouille sausage at walmart or a meat market. I prefer a meat market, it’s a better quality sausage. As for spices, “TONY CHACHERE’s or ZATARINS. You can find them with the spices. Shame on you Tammie. This is not gumbo it is some type of cajun soup. Justin Wilson is rolling over in his grave.
Try having kids, working full time, keeping a clean home and making this recipe jerk off!!! So many people easy to criticize. Grow up. My house smells beyond amazing and I feel blessed that this recipe was on pintrest!!
We have busy lives and don’t want to make a career out of Gumbo… just a recipe for a simple, delicious crockpot of Gumbo style stew. Get a life and stop trolling recipe blogs.
I just made this, and I literally just threw everything in the crockpot and the next morning…. THE HOUSE SMELLED AWESOME!!!!! So Good!!!! I used The Poblano pepper no seeds, and wow was this fantastic!!I will always use this recipe!! Thank you!!
it’s in my crockpot right now. Can’t wat to taste it..
Pamela, I hope you loved the Gumbo
I made it tonight…it was amazing! Made it exactly like the recipe calls for minus thyme…didn’t have it in my spices. It was a huge hit!!! Thanks for my new addition to our new family favorite!
I’m from NOLA and love gumbo. But I have diabetes, so I do not use a roux to thicken, preferring filé to do the job with a nicer flavor than wheat. Also, don’t use but one small red tomato. Then 4-5 small green tomatoes (tomatillos). And lots of ground filé, which my 2 sons add to their bowls after I have served them. Also, gumbo, in New Orleans, at home at least, is very much a matter of using what you have, so I often add liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce, black pepper, chopped parsley, 1/2 cup white wine, 1/2 can of beer (only when I have guests, as it then has too many carbs for my blood sugar control), a stick of butter (not margarine), VERY little fresh thyme, finely chopped, cilantro bouillon cubes, chopped GREEN onions instead of the big white onions, and you get the idea. No matter what I add or omit, it never turns out BAD. Another secret I learned from a guy from Houma was to dry marinade the chicken and sausage in lots (I truly mean more than you ever dreamed of using) of Tony Chachère’s BOLD seasoning, before adding to the liquids. As I think it still says on the round paperboard containers of TC, “You can never use too much!” Happy cooking to all.
It’s on the stove right now! Smells delicious. I also added okra, because I love it. Cheers!
Does the chicken and sausage need to be raw before putting in crock pot?
Hi Tammilee – I am wanting to try this but have a few questions, 1) Does the chicken need to be cooked first? 2) Should the shrimp be thawed before adding to the crockpot? 3) How many servings does it provide? There are only two of us, so if I need to halve it, I’ll know what I need to get. Thank you very much!!! I have visited NOLA many times and our favorite thing is to go to Pat O’Brien’s piano bar & enjoy their Hurricanes!! Would definitely recommend to anyone who visits!
Just add some okra some of Tony C’s instant dry roux and this becomes a really nice Gumbo. You can also make your own dry roux in the oven if you can’t find Tony C’s. A tip I received from a Shrimp Boat Captain; If your Gumbo has shrimp, never salt your Gumbo till the last minute of cooking. You run the chance of making the shrimp mushy and tasteless.
I made this this weekend and it was delicious! Thanks for sharing
Taylor, I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
I made this today and it was AMAZING! I only had a 14 oz can of tomatoes so I added a litle more liquid. I also used four bone in chicken thighs instead of breast, by the time I came home from work the meat fell right off the bone and shredded nicely. Thank you so much for sharing!
Erica, I am so glad that you enjoyed the Gumbo
On the chicken stock and rice does the c stand for cups as I’m in the UK and not sure hopefully making this tommorrow x
Do you cook this on low or high??
Can you freeze this?
I have made this for my husband and neighbors a few times. They love it. We have taken chicken out and added crab meat instead to make it more for seafood.
Ang, I am so glad that you have enjoyed the recipe. I love the addition of crab to it.
As my husband and I await and prepare for hurricane Irma I decided we needed comfort food for dinner tonight. We are 6 miles from the gulf coast in beautiful wakulla county. This smells delicious and we cannot wait to eat it tonight. Prayers for everyone in Florida. Dinner tonight should help calm my nerves. A margarita will help some too. Thanks for the recipe.
Renea, I hope that you were safe from the storm and the gumbo was the perfect comfort food.
Using shrimp in this recipe is a necessity. Please treat each ingredient with the proper care they deserve. That being said, make sure to brine your shrimp before throwing it into the crockpot. There are a few ways to do this…either a wet brine with salt/sugar and water or a dry brine with salt/ baking soda. Keeps the shrimp juicy and plump and makes this whole dish a pleasure. Ro-tel is the way we in NOLA do this, either with the commercial canned product or your own home recipe of diced tomatoes, green chilies, cilantro and splash of vinegar. Lump crab meat or crab claw meat added is the thing of bliss to make this stew a delight!
Absolutely loved this recipe! Like many others have done, I tweaked it slightly to fit my taste. I added 2 cups of okra as well as doubling the rice, chicken broth and Cajun seasoning. I was a little reluctant to add the optional hot pepper (small Serrano cut super thin), but I’m sure glad I did. This recipe was such a major hit with my family and friends that they requested it become my signature dish for our family cookout! Thanks Tammilee!!!
Your welcome! I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
What kind of Cajun seasoning? The only kind I found in the store that actually said “cajun” seasoning was Emerils, but it has salt so I’m afraid of making it too saltly.
As a La native; “Cajun seasoning” refers to Zatarans or (my go to) Tony Chachere’s. And yes; it contains salt that gets absorbed by the rice so our recipes call for the extra salt in the ingredients without making the meal over salted.
Made this yesterday and it was a hit! I tweaked the recipe a bit but not too much. I highly suggest trying this recipe.
Just to add a comment. I know the recipe calls for chicken breast, and that’s all good but…if you’re a true NOLA you know that the chicken thigh is not only cheaper but also more flavorful and easier to stew. So if anyone wants to try this dish for the first time, just use chicken thigh and cut into bite size pieces before tossing into the crock and know it won’t be dried out even from a long cook.
do you cok the chicken before you put it in the crockpot?
I added cut okra. This is absolutely DELICIOUS!!!!! Use rotel tomatoes and green chiles for extra kick.
I cannot believe how vicious some of ya’ll are!! It’s a recipe, a list of ingredients and directions to make a NOLA dish, it’s not a cure for diabetes or heart disease!! Swap out what you don’t have or like, every recipe is unique to the person making it even if you follow the recipe to the grains of salt. Have a glass of wine. a beer or whatever and chill!!
This is a very good recipe to have on hand when you feel the urge for some NOLA cuisine. In all honesty it is technically a New Orleans style soup or stew. Not that it’s a bad thing…just that it is missing a dark roux to make it everything it could be. I think that is what is getting some people all in an uproar over the title of “gumbo”. Making a dark roux and using a secondary thickening agent with either okra or file powder is truly a gumbo but this recipe as followed comes very close to that taste. The only thing about this recipe I would suggest, would be to use Ro-Tel instead of plain diced tomatoes. Adds a bit of punch to this NOLA style soup/stew. Overall this is a great dish!
This looks amazing and is on my list to try. Can you tell me how many it serves? I have a family of 6. Just trying to decide whether I should double.
Thank you!
Looks like this would be yummy but I think what my fellow louisianians are trying to say is for this to be called a gumbo, it must have a roux. Might be a great soup recipe but please don’t call it a gumbo. We’re pretty laid back in Louisiana but we take our food seriously 😉
I added regular spicy sausage (uncooked) Will mine still turn out ok?
I didn’t see this in the comments, Do you need to thaw your shrimp before you add it to the crockpot for it to be ready in a hour?
Is the sausage raw or cooked? Same with the chicken? (Sorry i’m learning!)
How many servings does this make?
Recipes ain’t set in stone and recipe cops won’t break down your door if you change things!! Cooking/baking for family and friends should be fun, if it isn’t you’re doing it wrong. FYI, based on the amount of meats and other ingredients it probably makes 6-8 servings, 1-1 1/2 c. over rice would be a serving. Also, a restaurant in my area adds pieces of blue crab in the pot, I’d suggest just using crab meat for ease and less mess.
I loved riding the trolleys and dinner on the Natchez.Walking through the French Quarter with a guide was so informative. There was so much to see, food to try and great people to talk to. It is certainly a city to see more than once.
Marieanne
Walking the French Quarter with a guide had to be amazing. I feel like there is so much history in the area that I am not aware of. I recently heard that they have a museum of Southern Food that I really want to go to. The history of dishes like Gumbo and how they came to New Orleans. I am so glad you had an amazing trip!
Just back from New Orleans..Did not take the cooking course, maybe next time, it is worth a repeat visit…What ever you call this soup it sure sounds delicious , I will be looking for and andoulla sausages answer okra…and serving it over a bowl of rice….thanks TAMMILEE
Your welcome Marieanne! What was your favorite part of New Orleans?
Tam, I’ve been to New Orleans, and your gumbo was as good as the one we had at the Commander’s Palace! I didn’t add okra but did add a lot of diced bell peppers and red pepper flakes. Our deli had fresh Andouille sausage and it was the perfect touch. I served it over hot rice with sourdough on the side. It was so easy – my first Cajun dish! My husband loved it and I’m adding it to our winter rotation. Thank you! (P.S. My girlfriend from Shreveport cleared my changes before I made it, and she said people in Louisiana are all about making the recipe work for *you* and what you have on hand. Cajun people aren’t picky – they’re hungry! My kind of crowd!)
Heather, Thank you so much for your sweet comment! You truly made my day. I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe!
Could this be sped up by putting it on high for 4? I don’t have 6-7 hours tonight but this sounds delicious!
I made this today (minus shrimp & celery because I don’t like either) and it was fabulous! I’m all for easy meals that cook themselves. Even better, this made my house smell delicious all day. Definitely one I’ll put away to try again. I used andouille sausage, two peppers, and two jalepenos to add a little more zing. So tasty.
Hi Karissa,
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe! I love that you added extra zing to it! Such a great idea.
Ok the rice needs to be put in way longer. Unless it calls for uncooked rice to be served. I had to take the shrimp out to let the rice finish cooking. Like an hour longer. Ohhh and to the other commenter okra sounds awesome in this. My first time making it. Everything else is amazing except now everything is going to be mush while I wait for the rice to cook through. Funny because my man didn’t even want me to add rice.
The recipe called for already COOKED rice to be added the last 1/2 hour.
As delicious as this looks, I think it’s a recipe for Jambalaya, not Gumbo since there’s no mention of a roux, which is the foundation for Gumbo. Also, Gumbo is usually served over rice rather than with the two already combined, which is how Jambalaya is served.
How many servings do you get from this recipe?
I’m wondering the same thing.
some of these keyboard warriors need to stop being petty. this recipe is awesome. just add okra like I did and move on. it’s a recipe not surgery. just add what you want and take out what you don’t.
How much okra did you add? (I’ve never used okra before. Do I wash and dice?)
You know, I always thought it went without saying that recipes provide the basic structure and the cook can and should feel free to add, subtract or modify the ingredients as s/he desires. So I’m not sure why some of the above comments blow off this recipes as “not gumbo.”
I made this recipe this last weekend and it was fabulous … and yes, I’ve had “real” gumbo and jambalaya in New Orleans. I added andouille sausage instead of the kielbasa and I used a jalapeno pepper. It turned out great! My sweetheart said it was now the recipe to beat … because I’ve been rolling out a lot of favorites this winter.
When I do it again … and I most certainly will … I’ll scale back the onion a bit. I used a large onion and suggest that either a small one or just half a large one would do the job. I served it with sourdough garlic bread with parmesan broiled on top.
Typically I don’t go with a “one medium onion, one bell pepper, 3 rib celery” method. Every vegetable varies in size. Depending on how much gumbo I’m making, I go with 1 C diced onion, 1/2 C diced bell pepper, 1/2 C diced celery. Just stick with that kind of ratio and you’re golden 😉
This is not gumbo.
Could you use uncooked instant rice in place of the cooked rice? If so when do I put it in and for how long?
You can use instant rice, I’d add it toward the end of the cook time, maybe 15 minutes before adding the shrimp. Just taste the rice to be sure it’s done!!
Only New Orleans uses tomatoes in their gumbo. Louisiana cajuns do not! Their gumbo is made using a roux and is brown in color.
AND she said she took a class in New Orleans, so your point means nothing, go find someone else to bully.
Last time I checked, New Orleans was in Louisiana.
I just had Gumbo in NOLA last month at 2 different location in the French Qt. and it was roux based. My guess is that you could spend an entire month in NOLA and not find a tomato based Gumbo.
HI,
I am from New Orleans ( and have worked and cooked in many restaurants ) and there are two types of Gumbos depending on where you are from and what the influence is. There is an okra based gumbo which is thinner and does not contain a roux. The okra and file (sassafras) are the thickener and it does have tomatoes in it. The roux based has a heavy French influence and is more common in New Orleans and by far in Louisiana. This one does not usually contain tomatoes in it and is a deep rich stew consistence. My dad is an okra based gumbo cooker and I prefer the French roux version. I actually add tomatoes to the roux one as well with chicken and andouille sausage. I also Okra t my gumbo as well. laissez les bon temps rouler
Gumbo definitely has to have orka in it to be called Gumbo. I can understand not using Andouille sausage, because not everyone has access to it.
If you have a Walmart, you have Andouille Sausage.
What kind of Gumbo can it be without Okra, or Andoule Sausage ?
Question: do you put your hot pepper in whole? The other veggies are specified (i.e. diced, minced). Looking forward to trying out this recipe tomorrow.